Turning the doorknob, Taehyun gestured for Mr Jung to come inside as his teacher took a seat by Beomgyu's bed. A horrible part of Beomgyu's mind kept telling him that his homeroom teacher wouldn't be any different compared to his last ones; how he would simply turn a blind eye to Beomgyu's situation.
"Beomgyu," spoke Mr Jung gently, "forgive me if I'm being too intrusive, but is there something that's going on at home?" He asked.
Sensing the latter's fear rising, Taehyun placed his hand over Beomgyu's which seemed to have calmed him down as he took a deep breath before explaining everything that has been going on at home. Having to go through it all was already a bad thing, but to repeat the process of retelling it over and over again was traumatising— as if he was allowing his mind to relive those moments of pain and suffering.
But this time, Taehyun was with him throughout the whole process of him reminiscing those torturous memories, harsh whippings, and nights of crying himself to sleep. He was there, giving him words of comfort and reassurance, to give him the strength to continue as he gave his homeroom teacher his side of the story.
Once he was done, he saw the look on Mr Jung's face; it wasn't one of disbelief, neither was it one of shock.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that. I know it isn't easy, and you're already so brave and resilient to be able to push through," he said, meaning it.
"By any chance, have you tried reporting this matter to the police?" Asked Mr Jung.
Beomgyu shook his head. "I'm scared, what if they can't find any evidence of abuse? What if I have nothing to prove my words? And if he is proved innocent, I don't want to imagine what he would do to me afterwards," Beomgyu explained, feeling every hair at the back of his neck standing up as he shuddered slightly just by thinking of the worst that could happen.
"Beomgyu, have you heard of the term, 'entrapment'?" Mr Jung asked.
"Doesn't it mean, 'when a police officer or any other government agent induce someone to commit a crime?" Answered Taehyun.
Beomgyu blinked at him, "but then this would mean bringing up the matter to the police, and I doubt they'll believe me," he spoke.
"I have a close friend who's a police. I'll discuss this matter with him. If we come up with something, I'll let you know as soon as possible," said Mr Jung. Beomgyu couldn't believe what he was hearing right now; he was going to get help.
"You believe me?" Asked Beomgyu incredulously.
"Of course I do!" Cried Mr Jung, "I'll tell him about it, and we'll definitely come up with something. Please take care, Beomgyu," he said, waving at the two before leaving the room. Once he was out of their sight, Taehyun clambered onto Beomgyu's bed as he embraced the latter tightly into a warm hug.
"I'm so proud of you," he whispered, not letting go.
"Thank you for believing in me," smiled Beomgyu as he pulled away, giving a light peck on Taehyun's lips.
He grinned once more as he got up from his bed before being shortly pulled back by the arm as Taehyun brought their lips together again.
»»—— ♡ ——««
Feeling as if he should let Beomgyu know about what he planned to do next, Mr Jung headed back to his room, opening the door slowly as he caught a narrow glimpse of the two boys practically having their lips glued together.
Bad timing, he told himself. Feeling a little flustered as he had just walked into his students' privacy. Mr Jung quickly shut the door once more, hoping that they perhaps didn't catch him walking in on them making out.
Thinking that what he wanted to say wasn't too important, Mr Jung left the hospital, not helping to suppress a smile; who knew that they were dating? He thought to himself as he let out a soft chuckle.
»»—— ♡ ——««
Feeling his smirk against his cheek, Beomgyu placed a hand at the back of the boy's neck, pulling their bodies in closer as their lips moved slowly in sync. Taehyun ran his fingers through Beomgyu's ash-blonde hair, making the latter feel his body shudder slightly in pleasure.
He placed a hand on Beomgyu's back as Taehyun slowly pushed the male onto the bed, their lips still connected. His face was blocking the ceiling light above, yet, he still managed to look good in such an unflattering pose as Beomgyu could feel his cheeks slowly turning pink.
"You like the view?" Chuckled Taehyun. Beomgyu couldn't help but let out a soft giggle as well as he replied with an "mhm."
"What would you like for dinner?" Taehyun asked as repositioned himself to sitting on the edge of the bed. A part of Beomgyu wished that moment would last longer— he chose to ignore that.
"Hmmm, pizza?" he replied.
"Pizza it is then, I'll have a look at the restaurants downstairs," said Taehyun, delivering a light kiss on Beomgyu's forehead before leaving the room.
»»—— ♡ ——««
Half an hour later, Taehyun walked into the room with a savoury aroma following his presence as he held up a plastic bag of two boxed pizzas. He assembled everything onto the single table Beomgyu had in his room as he gestured him to help himself.
"Thank you," said Beomgyu.
"Anything for you," replied Taehyun coolly, making Beomgyu's heart flutter a little by how smooth that was.
"By the way," said Beomgyu, "how are things with you and Yeonjun? You too definitely seem closer than the last time I saw you guys in school."
Taehyun blinked at him. "We're friends— no, acquaintances," he corrected quickly. Beomgyu couldn't help but laugh aloud as he replied, "you two seem to have a great friendship," he smiled.
"Pfft, as if," retorted Taehyun, rolling his eyes as he took another bite of his pizza slice.
"Any recent homework that has been assigned to us?" Asked Beomgyu, "I've finished most of last week's," he continued as he pointed to the stack of books on his left.
"No, not really— why do you ask?"
"I'm just bored," said Beomgyu with a sigh. It took Taehyun 10 seconds to remember that Beomgyu wasn't given a phone and surely he'd get bored just loitering around in the hospital all day.
"Oh my goodness— how could I forget?" Taehyun spluttered as he placed a palm on his forehead in frustration. "I'm going to bring you a laptop tomorrow so that you won't get too bored while staying here," he said.
"No, I can't accept it," spoke Beomgyu, shaking his head. "You've already done so much for me, and I just can't—"
"I insist," Taehyun interrupted with a wink as he placed a finger onto Beomgyu's lips. Just before he could open his mouth to come up with a retort, a knock on the door was heard as Mrs Kang stepped into the room.
"Mother!" Exclaimed Taehyun, getting up to greet her.
"Hi Taehyun," she smiled. "Beomgyu, how are you?"
"Good, thank you for visiting me, by the way," he replied, beaming at her.
"How can I not? You're like a second son to me, speaking of which, I brought some side dishes I made— just in case you get hungry. Let me help you store it in the fridge," Mrs Kang spoke as she held out a cloth bag that was filled with mini containers.
"Thank you," Beomgyu replied.
"I also brought another surprise with me," she said with a grin as she whipped out what seemed to be a brand new phone still in its box.
"For you," Mrs Kang continued, reading Beomgyu's expression of disbelief. "Taehyun has told me about how you haven't gotten a phone yet."
"I really appreciate it, Mrs Kang, but how can I—"
"It has already been registered under your name," she interrupted with a grin, implying that there's no possible way for Beomgyu to talk his way out of this one. The least Beomgyu could do to express his gratitude was to accept it, which he did as he thanked Taehyun's mother.
"I'll leave you two alone then," Mrs Kang spoke. "Wishing you a speedy recovery, Beomgyu," she said with another graceful smile before walking out of the room as the two bid their goodbyes.
"Taehyun," spoke Beomgyu once Mrs Kang was out of an earshot. "How do I start this?" he asked, holding up his new phone.
»»—— ♡ ——««
Settling next to Beomgyu, he helped him switch his phone on while explaining the basic functions of it, like how to connect it to the wifi, or how to restart it. Taehyun then gave him his phone number, in which Beomyu saved him as "Loveable Cutie Taehyun".
"What will you save me as?" asked Beomgyu eagerly.
"Hmmm, you'll never know," smiled Taehyun, holding his phone behind his back. "Try calling me if you really want to know." Beomgyu instantly scrambled for the "call" button as he clicked on Taehyun's contact. A ring was heard as Taehyun lifted his phone to show the contact name: "Precious Beomgyu".
"I don't know if I should cringe or be touched," joked Beomgyu as he laughed softly.
"Hey, then what's with 'Loveable Cutie Taehyun'?"
"Shall I change it then?" He asked, tilting his head to the side.
"NO, I'M PERFECTLY FINE WITH IT!" Said Taehyun quickly.
Letting out a happy sigh, Beomgyu laid back down on his bed as he felt a figure settling next to him as well. Taehyun placed a hand over the latter's shoulder as Beomgyu comfortably rested his head onto his extended arm.
"Aren't you going to head back home?" He asked, eyeing the clock which read 8:23 pm.
"Soon," Taehyun replied, pulling in the boy closer as Beomgyu nestled comfortably in his arms.